Page 29 of The Secret of the Three Fates
“Ruan. Ruan, we need to talk.” As I edged closer to where he was lying I realized that this might not have been the best idea.He was lying on his back, his chest bare and his left arm thrown over his eyes. His right arm draped lazily across his stomach, partially obscuring the trail of dark hair that disappeared below the sheet. I swallowed hard, casting my eyes dutifully to the ceiling before trying again.
“I need you to wake up.”
He shifted, groaning softly as he rolled over, the thin sheet slipping lower on his hips. I squeezed my eyes shut.Get yourself together, Ruby. He isn’t the first naked man you’ve seen.But he hadn’t agreed to be naked in front of me. Oh, why hadn’t I knocked louder? I’d been so caught up with Mr. Owen’s betrayal that I all but burst in on a man in his privacy. Good God. What else might I have interrupted? I squeezed my eyes tighter to preserve his remaining modesty.
“Why do I question the efficacy of locks whenever you are around…” There was an edge of humor in his voice.
“We need to talk.” The bedclothes rustled. Good. He must be sitting up.
“And you couldn’t knock?”
Eyes squeezed tight, I sighed. That was a very good question. I hadn’t really expected him to be asleep. “I did. You didn’t answer and this is important.”
“I’m wearing trousers. You can open your eyes anytime you’d like.”
The heat rose to my cheeks as I sank down in the chair beside the bed, hazarding a glance over to him. He did, indeed, wear trousers. He ran his hands roughly over his hair, doing little to calm the angry curls. My mouth grew dry, all my frustrations with Mr. Owen fading away into another entirely unrelated emotion.
Desire.
Lovely. Just what Ididn’thave time for.
“Ruby.”
“Right.” I swallowed down my very wayward thoughts.
The edge of his mouth curved up and my stomach unknotted. He was back. The man I’d known in Cornwall. “Are you going to tell me what can’t wait until morning or must I start guessing?”
I’d nearly forgotten how much I trulylikedRuan. “He’s aviscount.A viscount!”
He yawned, rubbing the sleep from his face. “Who is? Besides, we have a duke, a countess. Why not have a viscount?”
I swatted at his bare arm. “Ruan, I’m serious. Did you know about him? That Mr. Owen is the Viscount of Hawick?”
Ruan either was an incredible card player or he’d had his suspicions. Suddenly I felt ill.
“No.” He reached up, touching my brow softly, a cool rush flooding my veins from the contact. “No. I didn’t know. I just am not surprised.”
Whether his words, or whatever it was hedidwhen he touched me, it eased my mind considerably.
“I always knew he was hiding something. I just didn’t know what, and frankly didn’t care to ask.”
I wasn’t certain if that was better or worse. I drew in a deep breath and proceeded to tell him what I’d learned after leaving him by the bridge. He listened intently in the firelight as I left no detail unspoken. As I finished I looked up, waiting for him to say something. Really anything. Perhaps chime in with anoh, I know who did it!That would have been fabulous at this moment. We could tell the inspector and all go home.
“Owen doesn’t have any living children, does he?” Ruan asked.
“No. All his sons died in the war. Ben was his youngest.”
Ruan swore.
“What?”
The muscles in his jaw worked as he weighed his words.
“This isn’t good, is it?”
He shook his head. “You said that Andrew Lennox was the first to check the body after you pulled her from the lake?”
I nodded.
